As new evidence emerges, treatment strategies toward the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B are evolving. In 2019, a panel of national hepatologists published a Consensus Statement on the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B. Currently, an international group of hepatologists has been assembled to evaluate research since the publication of the original consensus, and to collaboratively develop the updated statements. The 2.0 Consensus was aimed to update the original consensus with the latest available studies, and provide a comprehensive overview of the current relevant scientific literatures regarding functional cure of hepatitis B, with a particular focus on issues that are not yet fully clarified. These cover the definition of functional cure of hepatitis B, its mechanisms and barriers, the effective strategies and treatment roadmap to achieve this endpoint, in particular new surrogate biomarkers used to measure efficacy or to predict response, and the appropriate approach to pursuing a functional cure in special populations, the development of emerging antivirals and immunomodulators with potential for curing hepatitis B. The statements are primarily intended to offer international guidance for clinicians in their practice to enhance the functional cure rate of chronic hepatitis B.

As new evidence emerges, treatment strategies toward the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B are evolving. In 2019, a panel of national hepatologists published a Consensus Statement on the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B. Currently, an international group of hepatologists has been assembled to evaluate research since the publication of the original consensus, and to collaboratively develop the updated statements. The 2.0 Consensus was aimed to update the original consensus with the latest available studies, and provide a comprehensive overview of the current relevant scientific literatures regarding functional cure of hepatitis B, with a particular focus on issues that are not yet fully clarified. These cover the definition of functional cure of hepatitis B, its mechanisms and barriers, the effective strategies and treatment roadmap to achieve this endpoint, in particular new surrogate biomarkers used to measure efficacy or to predict response, and the appropriate approach to pursuing a functional cure in special populations, the development of emerging antivirals and immunomodulators with potential for curing hepatitis B. The statements are primarily intended to offer international guidance for clinicians in their practice to enhance the functional cure rate of chronic hepatitis B.

As new evidence emerges, treatment strategies toward the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B are evolving. In 2019, a panel of national hepatologists published a Consensus Statement on the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B. Currently, an international group of hepatologists has been assembled to evaluate research since the publication of the original consensus, and to collaboratively develop the updated statements. The 2.0 Consensus was aimed to update the original consensus with the latest available studies, and provide a comprehensive overview of the current relevant scientific literatures regarding functional cure of hepatitis B, with a particular focus on issues that are not yet fully clarified. These cover the definition of functional cure of hepatitis B, its mechanisms and barriers, the effective strategies and treatment roadmap to achieve this endpoint, in particular new surrogate biomarkers used to measure efficacy or to predict response, and the appropriate approach to pursuing a functional cure in special populations, the development of emerging antivirals and immunomodulators with potential for curing hepatitis B. The statements are primarily intended to offer international guidance for clinicians in their practice to enhance the functional cure rate of chronic hepatitis B.

Purpose: This study aimed to identify the altered pathways and genes associated with freezing damage in human sperm during cryopreservation by multiomics analysis. Materials and Methods: Fifteen fresh human semen samples were collected for transcriptomic analysis, and another 5 fresh human semen samples were obtained for metabolomic analysis. For each semen sample, 1 mL was cryopreserved, and another 1 mL was left untreated for paired design. The results were then combined with previously published proteomic results to identify key genes/pathways. Results: Cryopreservation significantly reduced sperm motility and mitochondrial structure. Transcriptomic analysis revealed altered mitochondrial function, including changes in tRNA-methyltransferase activity and adenosine tri-phosphate/adenosine di-phosphate transmembrane transporter activity. Metabolomic analysis showed that the citrate cycle in mitochondria was significantly altered. Combining transcriptomic, proteomic, and metabolomic analyses revealed 346 genes that were altered in at least two omics analyses. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis showed that metabolic pathways were significantly altered and strongly associated with mitochondria. Five genes were altered in all three omics analyses: COL11A1, COL18A1, LPCAT3, NME1, and NNT. Conclusions Five genes were identified by multiomics analysis in human cryopreserved sperm. These genes might have specific functions in cryopreservation. Explorations of the functions of these genes will be helpful for sperm cryopreservation and sperm motility improvement or even for reproduction in the future.

Objective : To investigate the effect of isoprene cysteine carboxymethyltransferase (ICMT) gene on the migration and invasion of salivary adenoid cystic cancer cells (SACC) and the related mechanism, to provide experimental evidence for molecular targeted therapy of SACC. Methods: Adenoid cystic cancer cells SACC-LM and SACC-83 were cultured in vitro, and siRNA was transfected into human SACC-LM and SACC-83 cells (experimental group) by transient transfection of a liposome vector. A blank control group and negative control group were set up respectively (transfected NC-siRNA). qRT-PCR was peformed to measure the mRNA expression of ICMT and RhoA in each group after transfection and to determine the silencing efficiency. The expression of ICMT, membrane RhoA, total RhoA, matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2), matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and Rho associated with coiled helical binding protein kinase 1 (ROCK1) in each group was detected by Western blot. The proliferation abilityies of SACC cells was detected by CCK-8 assay. The migration and invasion ability of SACC cells were detected by comparing the relative healing area of cell scratch assay and the number of Transwell assay cells. Results: After transfection of ICMT-siRNA into SACC-LM and SACC-83 cells, the expression of ICMT gene and protein in the experimental group was significantly decreased compared with the negative control group and blank control group (P<0.05), but there were no significant differences in the expression of RhoA gene and total protein among all groups (P>0.05). The expression of RhoA membrane proteins, ROCK1, MMP-2, MMP-9 in the experimental group was significantly decreased compared with that in the negative control group and blank control group (P<0.05). Cell proliferation ability was significantly decreased (P<0.05). The migration and invasion abilities were significantly decreased (P<0.05). Conclusion In vitro silencing of ICMT gene can effectively inhibit the migration and invasion of human SACC-LM and SACC-83 cells, and the mechanism may be related to RhoA-ROCK signaling pathway.

Tuberculosis (TB) is an ancient infectious disease. Before the availability of effective drug therapy, it had high morbidity and mortality. In the past 100 years, the discovery of revolutionary anti-TB drugs such as streptomycin, isoniazid, pyrazinamide, ethambutol and rifampicin, along with drug combination treatment, has greatly improved TB control globally. As anti-TB drugs were widely used, multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis emerged due to acquired genetic mutations, and this now presents a major problem for effective treatment. Genes associated with drug resistance have been identified, including katG mutations in isoniazid resistance, rpoB mutations in rifampin resistance, pncA mutations in pyrazinamide resistance, and gyrA mutations in quinolone resistance. The major mechanisms of drug resistance include loss of enzyme activity in prodrug activation, drug target alteration, overexpression of drug target, and overexpression of the efflux pump. During the disease process, Mycobacterium tuberculosis may reside in different microenvironments where it is expose to acidic pH, low oxygen, reactive oxygen species and anti-TB drugs, which can facilitate the development of non-replicating persisters and promote bacterial survival. The mechanisms of persister formation may include toxin-antitoxin (TA) modules, DNA protection and repair, protein degradation such as trans-translation, efflux, and altered metabolism. In recent years, the use of new anti-TB drugs, repurposed drugs, and their drug combinations has greatly improved treatment outcomes in patients with both drug-susceptible TB and MDR/XDR-TB. The importance of developing more effective drugs targeting persisters of Mycobacterium tuberculosis is emphasized. In addition, host-directed therapeutics using both conventional drugs and herbal medicines for more effective TB treatment should also be explored. In this article, we review historical aspects of the research on anti-TB drugs and discuss the current understanding and treatments of drug resistant and persistent tuberculosis to inform future therapeutic development.
Humans ; Pyrazinamide/therapeutic use* ; Isoniazid/therapeutic use* ; Antitubercular Agents/therapeutic use* ; Tuberculosis, Multidrug-Resistant/microbiology* ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/genetics* ; Tuberculosis/drug therapy* ; Rifampin/therapeutic use* ; Mutation ; Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial/genetics*

Objective:To investigate the risk factors of thrombocytopenia in elderly patients with sepsis-associated acute kidney injury(SA-AKI), and to further evaluate whether the degree of thrombocytopenia is related to the increased risk of death on day 28.Methods:Elderly patients with SA-AKI admitted to ICU of our hospital from June 2017 to June 2020 were selected.The patients were divided into normal platelet group(56 cases)and thrombocytopenia group(72 cases)according to the platelet(PLT)count, and according to the degree of thrombocytopenia, they were further divided into three groups: PLT<20×10 9/L(group A, 22 cases), 20×10 9/L≤ PLT<50×10 9/L(group B, 27 cases), 50×10 9/L≤ PLT<100×10 9/L(group C, 23 cases).The general data, clinical baseline indicators and prognostic indicators of each group were compared to evaluate the risk factors of thrombocytopenia.At the same time, the impact of platelet count on the prognosis of elderly patients with SA-AKI was evaluated according to the length of stay in ICU, total length of stay and whether the patient died, and the correlation between the degree of thrombocytopenia and survival was analyzed. Results:A total of 128 elderly patients with SA-AKI were enrolled, including 73 males and 55 females.59.4 % of the patients were hospitalized in the department of internal medicine.The APACHEⅡ score was(15.5 ± 3.3)points, invasive mechanical ventilation accounted for 78.9%, positive inotropic therapy accounted for 12.8%, and 56 patients had normal platelet count.Thrombocytopenia occurred in 72 patients, including 22 patients with PLT<20×10 9/L, 27 patients with platelet count in 20-50×10 9/L, and 23 patients with platelet count in 50-100×10 9/L.There were significant differences in bloodstream infection, Gram-negative bacteria, APACHEⅡ score and procalcitonin(PCT)among the four groups( P<0.05).Further multivariate logistic regression showed that PCT was an independent risk factor for thrombocytopenia in elderly patients with SA-AKI( OR=1.05, 95% CI: 1.00-1.10, P=0.042).Compared with the normal platelet group, the 28-day mortality rate of the thrombocytopenia group was significantly higher than that of the normal platelet group, while the length of stay in ICU and the total length of stay were prolonged( P<0.05).Kaplan-Meier survival curve showed that the 28-day cumulative survival rate of thrombocytopenia group was lower than that of normal platelet group, and the risk of death increased with the degree of thrombocytopenia( χ2=31.479, P<0.001).Univariate Cox regression analysis showed that thrombocytopenia, bloodstream infection, APACHEⅡ score and PCT were risk factors for 28-day death in elderly patients with SA-AKI.Multivariate Cox analysis showed that bloodstream infection and APACHEⅡ score were independent risk factors for 28-day death.After adjusting these confounding factors, thrombocytopenia was an independent risk factor for death, and the degree of thrombocytopenia was related to the increased risk of death. Conclusions:Thrombocytopenia is common in elderly patients with SA-AKI, and elevated PCT levels increase the risk of thrombocytopenia.The degree of thrombocytopenia is an independent risk factor for 28-day mortality in such patients.

The global coronavirus disease 2019 epidemic is still in a pandemic state. Aging population with underlying diseases is prone to become severe, and have a higher mortality. The treatment capacity of the critical care department directly determines the treatment success rate of critical illness. At present, there is still a certain gap between domestic and foreign countries in intensive care unit (ICU), which is not only in the allocation of medical staff, but also in the beds and settings. The current medical model cannot fully meet the needs of development. The experience and lessons of many major public health emergencies suggested that " dual track of peace and war" approach in discipline construction of critical care is the best medical model. Following the concept of "combination of peace and war", strengthening the discipline construction of critical care department in municipal and district designated hospitals, allocating reasonable standard ICU, step-down ICU and combat readiness ICU, establishing rapid response team, and strengthening regular training and scientific management may be the key measures to deal with the epidemic.

Since the discovery of circulating hepatitis B virus (HBV) RNA in the peripheral blood of patients with chronic hepatitis B in 1996, a growing number of studies have focused on clarifying the biological characteristics and clinical application value of serum HBV RNA. This consensus mainly summarizes the research progress of serum HBV RNA existing profiles, quantitative detection methods, and current clinical applications. In order to better apply this indicator for the clinical management of patients with chronic HBV infection, recommendations on quantitative detection target regions, detection results, and clinical applications are put forward.

Administration, Intravenous ; Ascorbic Acid/therapeutic use* ; COVID-19 ; Humans ; Pneumonia ; SARS-CoV-2